They’d certainly trade the three goals for three points, but Sunday’s offensive outburst against Los Angeles leaves FC Dallas with plenty to build on as they prepare for a crucial west-coast road trip.

The scoreless drought heading into the match was well documented, but FCD put that to rest early the first half with Matt Hedges goal. The 14th-minute header seemed to lift a weight off the shoulders of the squad who played with an offensive fervor not recently seen including much-improved movement off the ball.

“I feel like it improved quite well,” said Schellas Hyndman about the team movement. “Playing through the midfield with those players, we kept possession of the ball. I would’ve liked to have seen our outside backs play more balls over the top so [their defenders] would have to run backwards and maybe kick it out of bounds...but I thought there was more movement, more energy on the field, more desire and the big word is determination.”

HIGHLIGHTS: FCD 3, LA 3

There were certainly positives and negatives to take from Sunday’s wild match, but the mood after the match was seeing the glass half-full after coming back to take a point from the defending champions late in the match, a game they could’ve won if Jackson’s late shot was just a couple inches inside the post.

“I think the glass is definitely half full,” said Hyndman. “I think we’re going in the right direction. I don’t know how the next three games are going to go with these injuries and how we’re going to adjust, but at the same time I’m relieved that we’re scoring goals and going in the right direction.”

18-year-old defender Kellyn Acosta’s starting debut was certainly a bright spot from the match and he echoed Hyndman’s sentiments.

“We need to touch up on some things. I think we’re going back to scoring which is good and a plus for us, but we let in three goals defensively and we can do better,” said Acosta. “We can create more chances and hopefully in the next game against Portland we can fix those mistakes and get a win out there.”